Just call me Bat Girl!

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Several mornings each week, I set my alarm for 4:02 so I can haul myself out of bed and drive a few towns over to swim. I turn my brain off and just go through the motions at that hour. You know, if I was to really think things over at that hour I'd come up with at least 10 good reasons Not to get up that day.  Reasons that seem perfectly logical at that time, but two hours later when I get up (yes, I've blown off the alarm a couple times ) to go through a normal morning, I am  full of regret and disgust at my laziness. 

The thing is, it's Hard to get to bed early enough to make that hour less painful. I have 3 boys with busy evenings full of everything from lacrosse to concerts to homework, just to name a few things.  I think 95% of the time, I go to bed before my oldest son these days.  The point is, those pre-swim mornings are short enough. But throw in this fun & it's even better when the alarm goes off. ha..

Last Tuesday night I set my alarm and climbed in around 10. That's about the best I can do. That gives me 6 hours IN the bed but not necessarily 6 hrs of sleep. I try to make up for it other days, it's just part of my deal. 

In the middle of the night that night, I had the most annoying feeling on my neck. After  a bit of confusion, and swatting and screaming, "Something is biting me!" I did in fact realize I was Not dreaming and I really was feeling something on my neck and now on my hands as I tried to fling it off me. 

I remember my husband saying something along the lines of, "what? stop it. What's up with the chain?" (He told me later, and we laughed very hard at this, that he thought I was whipping a chain around in the air!!?? Turns out, it was the sound the bat was making!!!! Ewwwww!!! So gross. But the chain part is pretty funny. ) Before too long the light was on and he was standing next to the bed, looking down at his pillow. 

I proudly pointed and said, "SEE! I told you!!!" 
(one of those moments I secretly wished I was wrong!!" 

  
Ok, it really bothers me to post that and to LOOK AT it!!!! ( this is not OUR bat, just  picture but it's close ) -- There were other pictures of bats online showing bats with big wingspans and teeth and they looked more like bats. But what we saw, was a little blob. 
IN OUR BED!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  

Mark just stood there with his hand over his mouth and said, "I do NOT like this." 

I actually kind of laughed and then started yelling, "Let's get it! Do something! WE have to go back to bed, I only have an hour!" 

Seriously..it was 2:53 a.m. and what was on my mind?? The alarm going off at 4 so I could swim. I know... why was I so worried about that at that time? Tunnel vision I guess. I hate missing workouts! But, It would have been the "Perfect" excuse for myself 65 minutes later! :) 

The thing took off and started dive bombing around our bedroom! What the heck???? 
This is where I win wife of the year. 

Mark starts running around the room with a big towel to catch the thing while I pulled the covers up over my head and hid and screamed a few times when I peeked. I remember thinking, "phew, it's hot under here... hope he gets that thing soon!!" Seriously, I was a lot of help. ( eye roll at myself ) 

He did get it pretty fast I must say. He caught it and we opened up a window and chucked it out. I didn't look at the clock again but we had the lights off and went back to bed asap. I had a few dreams about bats (really... lots & lots of bats in the dreams ) over the next 45 min but the alarm went off as it always does and I went to the pool! I was proud of myself for that. 
When I got home a few hours later,  we talked and we thought about it. Hmm... bats= Rabies. Oh #$%^$!!!  I didn't have any broken skin on my neck at all. There was a tiny red spot but that may have been there before. I was probably fine. I didn't want to overreact and seem silly. And yet, I called my doc and they said to come in to see them. I really felt like I was probably wasting everyone's time. However, they called back a bit later and said we had to go to the ER ( not avail at the office ) for an immunoglobulin injection + rabies shots. Turns out, if you wake up in the same room as a bat, you have to do this. Or... risk worrying about death by rabies. And you know, that's not really what we need. Three boys left because parents bit by a bat? Sounds a bit dramatic and like a bad tv show but seriously... we went in for the shots. 

How did it get in there? No clue. We have new windows and the house is tight. Or at least most of it is. I think it came in the attic or was there Before we had work done last fall to tighten a few places up. Gross. 

Why didn't we kill it!!?? No clue on that either. It didn't cross our minds. They eat mosquitoes is what Mark's said in the past.  Ha..that's the last time we don't kill it. We could have had it tested and avoided some VERY pricey shots.  

Last Wednesday, I spent over 2 hrs in the ER getting round 1 of the shots. I had to have 4 that day.... one in each leg and one in each arm. They did two at a time. It hurt but I thought I was fine, until I stood up. My heart started thumping, I was HOT and then very very dizzy... so down I went. But 5 minutes later I was fine.  At first, Mark was very resistant to getting treated. He hadn't felt the thing on him and didn't see the need for double whammy ER bills PLUS the cost of the meds. Well.... doc examined him and he had several decent sized scratches on his shoulder. I think I Flung the thing off me and onto him.  It was on His pillow after all...... thank god I convinced him to get the TX too. 
The stuff is weight based, so he needed more of it. And, they had to inject it all around the site of the wound. So he had about 8 little injections on his shoulder + two in his hips and arms too. Thankfully they said they couldn't put it in my neck so I only had arms and legs shot up. 

Saturday, we both went back for more. And today. And again next week.  

But hey, we wont' get rabies!!!! And if another bat comes near me again, it better run for it's life! 

That is Enough about that!!!